Optimism in Anatole Broyards Intoxicated by My Illness Essay -- Intox

In Anatole Broyard's Intoxicated by My Illness, instead of confronting the reality of his illness, he tries to rise above it. From the moment he found out he had been diagnosed with cancer of the prostate, Broyard was composed about it. "He felt something like relief" he says. He figures you have two choices when your life is threatened, "you can turn towards it or away from it" He turned toward it and let the illness make him even more appreciative for being alive. Although he had realized for the first time that he didn't have forever he knows that life itself has a deadline, his might just come a little sooner than other peoples'. His friends found him courageous for thinking this way. Broyard never believed that his perspective of life had anything to do with courage, but instead with his desire to live and move on with his everyday routines. If he still had more time to live, why should he waste it by becoming depressed over the reality of things? In the 1950s, when he tried to talk his friend Jules out of commiting suicide, he began to "sell life to him" by makin...

Deadbeat Parents :: essays research papers

Parents who do not pay their child support are deadbeat parents. This creates a hardship for the case managers in the child support office, the legal staff in preparing documents and court appearances, but most importantly, the children who are the recipients of the child support. Child support enforcement exists to help ensure that every child receives the support that is required by law. This process begins through court ordered divorce, paternity genetic testing, or application made directly to the child support office. Through a court ordered divorce proceeding, the absent parent (the individual who is not awarded custody) is required to pay child support. Guidelines are established for determining the amount to be paid and an order is established. If an individual is in disagreement with an order a paternity genetic test can be given. A custodial parent can complete an application to submit to the local child support enforcement office. Once this is received, the application goe s through several processes. First, an establishment case manager reviews the paperwork and has appointments with both parties involved. Once the order is established, through the case manager or child support court, the case goes to an enforcement case manager. This person is responsible for enforcing the child support order by maintaining contact with the absent parent, securing employment information, address, etc. If an individual fails to comply with the order, another process begins. The case is referred to the legal department for enforcement. Paperwork issued from the court is mailed to the individual requiring them to appear in court on a specific date and time. If they do appear, they are given an opportunity to explain why they are not meeting their order. If this is acceptable by the judge, they are given another opportunity to comply. In most cases, the absent parents do not show up for court and a contempt warrant is issued. These deadbeats are not easily found. The ch ild support enforcement office has to depend on information received from concerned citizens.

Biogeography as Evidence That Evolution Accounts for Diversity of Life

2) Biogeography is one source of evidence that evolution accounts for the diversity of life. Biogeography is the study of the geographic distribution of species and has contributed evidence for descent from common ancestors, which was hypothesized by Charles Darwin. Darwin and Alfred Wallace were both very interested in biogeography, which provided Darwin with evidence for evolution. Species distribution can be accounted for by ecological factors or by historical factors. The three major historical factors affecting geographic distribution are dispersal, extinction and vicariance. Island biogeography has been extensively studied to show the evolution of species due to geographic barriers. Biogeography along with the history of the earth lends supporting evidence to evolution and the diversity of life on earth. Darwin showed that biogeographic facts make sense if a species has a definite site of origin, achieves a broader distribution by dispersal, and becomes modified giving rise to descendent species in the regions in which it migrates. He noticed that unrelated organisms inhabit parts of the world with similar climates and habitats, such as Old and New World organisms. Darwin also found that organisms of various regions may be different due to barriers or obstacles that may limit migration. He also stated that there is a relation between inhabitants of the same continent or sea but that species differ from place to place. An example of this is aquatic rodents of South America are related to mountainous and grassland rodents of South America, but not to aquatic rodents of North America. Alfred Wallace noticed that several higher taxa had similar distributions and that the composition of biota is more uniform within certain regions then between them. He had collected specimens in the Malay Archipelago and had thought of natural selection. He did extensive field work in the Amazon and noticed that geographic barriers, such as the Amazon River itself, separated the ranges of closely related species. These observations led him to designate several biogeographic realms. He observed that the fauna of Australia and Asia were different and the break between them is known as the Wallace Line. Historical factors affecting geographic distributions of species include extinction, dispersal, and vicariance. Extinction of certain opulations reduces the distribution of species but it also allows for diversification. Extinctions are selective in that some species are more likely to survive then others. For example, gastropods with wide geographic and ecological distributions and those with many species survived the end-Permian extinction. Extinction can lead to diversification in that it resets the stage for evolutionary radiations, perhaps by p ermitting the appearance of new community structures. Futuyma suggests that the extinction of one group permits the efflorescence of others, which is also shown in the fossil record. Dispersal and vicariance are the major hypotheses attributing to a taxon’s distribution. An example of vicarance is taxa that have members on different land masses in the Southern Hemisphere, which is hypothesized to be due to the breakup of Gondwanaland isolating descendents of common ancestors. America, Africa, Madagascar, and India are all home to the freshwater fishes, cichlids. Molecular phylogenetic analyses has shown that two sister clades of cichlids have been found, one consisting of Madagascan and Indian species, and the other of two monophyletic groups, one in Africa and one in South America. However, the splits between the clades are more recent than the breakup of Gondwanaland which suggests that perhaps the cichlids achieved their distribution by dispersal. Both vicariance and dispersal could be the likely cause of the geographic distribution of cichlids. Species expand their ranges by dispersal which is a critical process for geographic isolation in evolution and the current geographic distributions. Most species are restricted to certain biogeographic realms by their dispersal ability but many species have expanded their range due to human transplant. For example, the European starling has expanded in North America following its introduction into New York City in 1896 (Futuyma, 2005). Transplanted species may disrupt the ecosystem at its new location by evolving and adapting to the new environment, possibly causing the extinction of native species. Adaptation to the environment as a primary product of evolution was suggested by Jean Baptiste Lamarck who believed that evolution is the best explanation of the diversity of life. Vicariance is the separation of populations of a widespread species by barriers arising from changes in climate, geology, or habitat. Vicariance can lead to speciation if populations are separated by a geographic barrier and evolve genetic reproductive isolation such that if the barrier disappears, the species can no longer interbreed. Natural selection is a powerful evolutionary force and therefore the genetic changes that result in reproductive isolation in vicariant speciation are likely due to adaptive evolution. Several geological processes can fragment a population into two, such as a mountain range emerging, rivers, lakes, or land bridges. Island biogeography is a very good example of evidence for evolution. Islands are generally where endemic species of plants and animals are found but Darwin observed that most island species are closely related to species from the nearest mainland or neighbouring island. Two islands that have similar environments in different parts of the world are populated by species that are taxonomically affiliated with the plants and animals of the nearest mainland which generally has a different environment. Speciation may occur on islands if a species that disperses from a mainland to an island succeeds in its new environment and gives rise to several new species as populations spread to other islands. Once isolated, geographically separated populations become genetically differentiated as a result of mutation and other processes such as natural selection. Environmental factors are likely to be different from one place to another so natural selection can contribute to geographic variation, differences in the gene pool between populations. Speciation is often a gradual process as the reproductive barriers between the groups is only partial in the beginning but leads to complete reproduction separation (Campbell and Reece, 2002). An example of vicariance and island biogeography is the finches on the Galapagos Islands. Darwin noticed that the finches he collected from the islands were very similar, but that they were in fact different species. Some were unique to individual islands, while other species were distributed on two or more islands that were close together. New finch species had arisen from an ancestral form by the gradual accumulation of adaptations to a different environment. For example, the different beak sizes of the finches are adapted to the specific food available to them on their home island. This is an example of species adapting and evolving to suit their new environment. The Hawaiian Islands are another example of the world’s showcase of evolution and island biogeography. Each island started bare but was gradually populated by species that either rode ocean currents or blew over in the wind, either from distant islands or continents. The physical diversity of each island provides many different environmental opportunities for evolutionary divergence by natural selection. Many of the plants and animals that are currently found on the islands are found nowhere else in the world, they are endemic to the Hawaiian archipelago (Campbell and Reece, 2002). The history of earth also helps to explain the current geographic distribution of species. For example, the emergence of volcanic islands such as the Galapagos opens new environments for species to inhabit and adaptive radiation fills many of the available niches with new species. On a global scale, continental drift is a major factor correlated with the spatial distribution of life and with such evolutionary episodes as mass extinctions followed by increases in biological diversity. The continents drift about earth’s surface on plates of crust floating on the hot mantle and their positions can therefore change relative to one another. At the end of the Paleozoic era, plate movements brought all the landmasses together into a super continent named Pangaea. Species that had been evolving in isolation were brought together at this point and forced to compete. The formation of Pangea reduced shoreline, drained shallow coastal areas, changed the climate and increased the area inland destroying a considerable amount of habitat and reshaping biodiversity. During the Mesozoic, Pangaea broke apart creating new continents that became separate evolutionary areas allowing flora and fauna to diverge. The diversity of life on earth is due to millions of years of evolution. Darwin and Wallace were both important figures in the field of biogeography as their interest and research led to ideas that are still apparent today. Historical geographic factors and the history of the earth are a few aspects that have led to current biodiversity. Biogeography shows compelling evidence that species evolve through natural selection by adapting to new environments. Speciation will continue to occur as the environment changes and as the continents continue to drift. References: Campbell, N. A, and Reece, J. B. 2002. Biology; Sixth Edition. Benjamin Cummings, San Francisco. Futuyma, D. J. 2005. Evolution. Sinauer Associates Inc. , Massachusetts.

Law Enforcement Budget Process Essay

The economic downturn of the past several years has been devastating to local economies and, by extension, their local law enforcement agencies. According to a report by the National Institute of Justice, the United States is currently experiencing the 10th economic decline since World War II (Wiseman 2011). The impact of this downturn will result in a change of how law enforcement services are delivered. As has been discussed by the COPS Office Director, Bernard Melekian, in a series of recent articles published in the Community Policing Dispatch, expectations will not be lowered just because an agency now has fewer officers, or because the budget is limited. Simply doing less while waiting for local budgets to recover to pre-2008 levels is not a viable option. Law enforcement leaders are faced with budget contractions that are in need to identified in different ways to deliver police services and, perhaps more importantly, articulate what the new public safety models will look like to their communities (Melekian 2011a). The effects of the economic downturn on law enforcement agencies may be felt for the next 5–10 years, or worse, permanently. These changes could be permanently driven not just by the economy, but by local government officials who determined that allocating 30–50 percent of their general fund budgets for public safety costs is no longer a fiscal possibility (Melekian 2011b). While it appears that the economy is beginning to recover on the national level, most economists agree that local jurisdictions are still in decline and will continue to be so, at least in the short term. Due to the decline of tax revenues because of Foreclosures County and municipal budgets tend lagging behind the general economy, which is one of the main source of funding for local agencies. Agencies are also faced with the budget realities, the current model for service delivery—which has been with us for the last 50 years—is already starting to change, and will be forced to continue to change dramatically and rapidly in the next 3–5 years. Police departments have been one of the affected by the current economic climate. Restricting revenues nationwide have forced local governments to make cuts in spending across the board, which has affected everything to include public safety operating budgets. However, while these budget cuts are threatening law enforcement jobs the responsibility to serve and protect remain. There has been no methodical way of measuring the effect the economic downturn has had on police agencies across our nation. A good example is how Nigeria has been experiencing difficulties in Budget implementation. The objective of the article was to present alternative forms of budgeting and after exposition on them, to recommend one that could mitigate budget implementation problem for Nigeria. Two types of budgeting addressed are incremental and zero-base. Under incremental budgeting, a certain percentage is added or subtracted from previous period’s figures to arrive at new period’s budget. Under zero bases, every program is reevaluated for its merits, as if previous budgets never existed. The starting points are the results hoped to achieve, and every debate about budget implementation is done prior to passage. Zero base budgeting is analogous to marketing concept in terms of information requirement and zeroing in on customized needs. To the extent that zero base budgeting plans, executes and controls, it serves as a management tool. Nigeria’s budgeting has been incremental, overly politicized and not carried out by experts, but merely based on benchmark price and quota of daily oil production. Factors militating against proper budgeting in Nigeria are distortions in fiscal transparency. Budget implementation in Nigeria is a critical problem. Many have blamed our poor socio-economic and infrastructural development on low degree of budget implementation, which is a result of incremental budgeting process. The paper therefore recommends zero based budgeting to Nigeria at all levels (GJSS, 2012). Sometimes inefficiencies result due to poor integration of the finance and strategy. â€Å"Budgeting and performance are typically overseen by the finance department, whereas planning s coordinated by strategy department. Often, the two processes aren’t well integrated, resulting in strategies that are often dictated by the budget process instead of vice versa† (Gary 2003). The reason for this could be that everyone involved may be attempting to accomplish the same goals, but also trying to make sure that the outcome will be beneficial to them, such as a substantial bonus or a reward. A budget cycle refers to the whole process from the commencement of developing a budget to the execution of the final charge on the budget. Since the majority of the budgets are prepared for a one year period, budget cycles cover the costs and expenditures for a period of one year. However, there are budget cycles that run for more than one year period. Government budgets have a budget cycle of at least 18 months from the conception of the various departments’ budgets to the time the appropriation bills are signed into law (Hyde, 2001). The initial steps of the budget cycle take place in the various departments and agencies. The program officers in the various departments compile all information that is necessary in the preparation of the budget. The budget cycle culminates with the president’s budget application to the Congress. This often takes place in February (USDOJ, 2011). A budget refers to a list of premeditated revenues and expenses. It represents a tool for savings and expenditure. A budget can also be defined as an organizational plan that is stated in monetary terms. It is used as a road map for conducting the activities, objectives, assumptions, and strategies of an organization. A budget cycle is comprised of various stages. Budget planning for the new fiscal year marks the first step of the budget cycle, while closing and carry forward activities mark the end of a budget cycle (Hyde, 2001). The steps outlined below are steps of a sample government’s budget cycle: Budget submissions: this entails the submission of the budget plans to the respective Budget Offers in various government departments. The budgets are reviewed and approved. Budget approval: this entails the executive committee approving the budget. The Initial Budget Authorizations are then submitted to the respective supervisors who address the respective cost items. Global Changes: the salaries are adjusted so that they reflect salary increases that are permitted by the Salary Subcommittee and the Human Resources Department. Closing: this entails the closure of the budgets at the end of the fiscal year. Carry forwards: it entails carrying forward all the unspent money to the following fiscal year. This marks the last step in the budget cycle. In most instances, law enforcement management prepares master budget for the coming year. The master budget includes the projected expenses and maintenance which is incorporated in the master budget and other smaller budgets such as training, overtime, marketing, administrative, and departmental budgets. By establishing an operating and financial budget for a future period, management can identify problems in advance. This can be maintained by forecasting for future predictions. A forecast is a reflection of the future. When forecasting is taken into account, two key aspects to consider are cash budgets and expenditure forecast. In most instances, budgets are and should be prepared for a future period such as an oncoming accounting or financial year. They are detailed by quarters or months. Typically, annual budgets are not altered once the year begins. However, budgets should not be rigid so as to prevent timely actions if need arises. Instead, budgets should only act as a guide rather than a restriction. However, there are rare circumstances when an annual budget should be revised such as due to a radical change in the business environment. Budgets are also important for obtaining funding since they portray an organization’s capacity to the lending institutions and financiers. Additionally, budgets are important management tools, they aid in setting milestones that need accountability to achieve, and aid an organization in identifying risks and establishing benchmarks. Thus, budgets facilitate the process of making adjustments to avoid risks, and to measure the benchmarks. Understanding the significance of budgeting marks the first step towards successful financial planning. It plays a significant role in the strategic planning process by an organization. It outlines the future financial goals and needs of an organization such as technological needs, overhead needs, financial requirements, and capital improvements. I have a very strong opinion that budgeting should not be scrapped, rather be modified to meet the current business environment. Organizations would have to restructure compensation programs so that managers no longer have an incentive to favors short-term goals over the longer-term. Budgeting will have to be flexible to be able to be adjusted from time to time to reflect changes in organizational goals and the economic environment. Again, accounting department should be responsible for compiling only budget information; they should not determine the budgeting process. Management, through the planning process should determine the budget, and all departments should be included in the process. Budgeting should be both top down and bottom up; i. e. upper level management and middle level management will both work to finalize a budget. We can streamline the budgeting process by developing a financial model. Financial models can facilitate â€Å"what if† analysis so we can assess decisions before they are made. This can dramatically improve the budgeting process. One of the biggest challenges within financial planning and budgeting is how do we make it value-added. Budgeting requires clear channels of communication, support from upper-level management, participation from various personnel, and predictive characteristics. Budgeting should not strive for accuracy, but should strive to support the decision making process. If we focus too much on accuracy, we will end-up with a budgeting process that incurs time and costs in excess of the benefits derived. The challenge is to make financial planning a value-added activity that helps the organization achieve its strategic goals and objectives. In order for department to compensate for dwindling budget, many law enforcement officer have had to learn how to focus on what can they can sacrifice from their normal lifestyle in order to offset the reduction in available spending. Some of these sacrifices have included families foregoing summer vacations, or shopping in discount stores instead of department stores they are accustomed too. However, today law enforcement agencies are faced with the difficult task of maintaining the same service that their communities expect despite the extreme reduction in available resources. And, in order for them to deliver the same high level of protection and emergency responsiveness that the communities depend on, law enforcement agencies must find new and inventive techniques to address those needs in cost-effective and maintainable way. Agencies must have a good understanding of how budgeting marks the first step towards successful financial planning. Budgeting has a significant role in the strategic planning process by any organization. It provides the framework for future financial goals and the needs of an organization such as technical equipment like laptops, radios, and side arms. It also shows the overhead needs, and departmental financial requirements. It can also outline the costs involved in order to get the resources that are required to meet their financial goals. Developing a budget is an important tool for determining the department’s performance, in motivating the upper-management, other members of staff, and measuring the results towards accomplishing the organization’s financial goal. References Gary, L (2003) Breaking the Budget Impasse. Pg 3, Retrieved September 30, 2013, Idio, U. S. (2012). THE BUDGET AS A MANAGEMENT TOOL: ZERO BASE BUDGETING, PANACEA TO BUDGET IMPLEMENTATION IN NIGERIA. Global Journal of Social Sciences, 11(1), 1-7. Retrieved from http://search. proquest. com/docview/1036581432? accountid=32521 http://www. cops. usdoj. gov/files/RIC/Publications/e101113406_Economic%20Impact. pdf Melekian, B. , (2011a). Director’s Message. Community Policing Dispatch vol. 4, no. 3. http://cops. usdoj. gov/html/dispatch/03-2011/DirectorMessage. asp. Melekian, B. , (2011b). Director’s Column: July 2011. Community Policing Dispatch vol. 4, no. 7. http://cops. usdoj. gov/html/dispatch/07-2011/DirectorMessage. asp. Wiseman, J. , (2011). Strategic Cutback Management: Law Enforcement Leadership for Lean Times. Research for Practice, Washington, D. C. : U. S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, NCJ 232077.

Willy Loman

The American Dream is the idea that with hard work and perseverance, anyone can succeed in America, the land of opportunity.   However, as time went by, the idea of the American Dream came to mean working to buy material possessions, and no matter how hard someone works, there is always more to buy.   As people struggle to achieve the American Dream, companies downsize and fire people who have given their lives to that company.   Capitalism in America causes a very few people to gain wealth while the rest of society just continues to struggle. The unforgettable Willy Loman and his family demonstrate the dangers and downright destructive forces of capitalism.   Willy Loman has simply unrealistic expectations of his own life and his family members.   He does not face his own flaws and just cannot seem to get ahead.   Willy Loman shows the dangers of getting too wrapped up in the very values of capitalism such as the idea that money equals character and material possessions defines self-worth. As Willy continues to be unsuccessful, he feels more and more inadequate and depressed.   He is courted by the grand idea of the American Dream without understanding that it is almost unattainable for many.   He suffers from this system as well as his own inability to change the dream or to cope with the unrealistic nature of the dream.   Capitalism kills his American Dream. Willy raises his children by transferring his own unrealistic version of the dream to them in myriad ways.   Willy’s focus in raising his children is that they be both attractive and popular. By raising his children this way, they never learn any skills that will sustain them in life.   In fact, they learn really the opposite of capitalism in making the effort to get ahead. Biff, who thinks he is above it all because he is so popular and well-liked that he doesn’t devote any time to schoolwork and ends up flunking high school math.   He doesn’t make it up in summer school so he cannot go to college.   He actually ends up stealing from his boss, and is basically floundering in the world.   He, like his father, always has grandiose ideas about success.   Happy, on the other hand, turns out another way.   Happy believes that Bill Oliver (the boss Biff stole from) will lend them money for one of their half-baked plans about selling sporting goods.   He is completely unrealistic and has no ambition.   Happy is well-liked, especially by women, but spends all his time trying to â€Å"score.† No effort is devoted to actually getting a job or being self-sufficient.   Because Willy is so focused on the idea that his children will achieve the American Dream, he teaches them horrible values.   When Biff steals a football, Willy praises him.   When Biff flunks math, he ignores the fact that Biff cheated.   He pumps up their self-esteem so much that they cannot hold down jobs.   They cannot seem to stoop to taking orders from anyone.   And Willy cannot seem to avoid making these false promises to them. For example as he tells his boys, â€Å"the man who makes an appearance in the business world, the man who creates a personal interest, is the man who gets ahead. Be liked and you will never want.   You take me, for instance.   I never have to wait in line to see a buyer.   â€Å"Willy Loman is here!†Ã‚   That’s all they have to know and I go right through.† (Miller 33)   However, he is a salesman for the same company who lets him go without a second thought, as he becomes less useful to them.   Willy is not preparing his children for a world of capitalistic corporate downsizing and such. He pumps his children up for life but goes way too far in avoiding the truth.   When Biff talks about working for Bill Oliver, he says, â€Å"How the hell did I ever get the idea I was a salesman there?   I even believed myself that I’d been a salesman for him!   And then he gave me one look and –I realized what a ridiculous lie my whole life had been!   We’ve been talking in a dream for fifteen years. I was a shipping clerk† (Miller 104).   In this quote Biff summarizes the idea that Willy has filled them both full of hot air, to the point that they cannot even live in the â€Å"real† world.   Biff cannot even admit that he was only a lowly clerk and so he ends up getting angry and stealing from his own boss.   Willy has not allowed the boys to truly see reality. Another capitalistic idea presented is that everyone must work and work in this world to provide for their families, to keep them in the newest things.   However, people never really get to see the benefits of all their hard work.   As a society, most families are in debt for everything they â€Å"own,† and they never get to see the end product of that.   As Willy says, Figure it out.   Work a lifetime to pay off a house.   You finally own it, and there’s nobody left to live in it† (Miller 15). By the time Willy works enough years in his life to pay off the house and the stuff in it, the kids are grown and he is on the verge of retirement.   And as he says, â€Å"I gotta be at it ten, twelve hours a day† (Miller 37).   He works so hard to provide for his family but never actually gets to spend time with them because he is always working to pay for all that stuff.   In a capitalistic world, things are made to be replaced and to keep their owners paying on them.   â€Å"Once in my life I would like to own something outright before it is broken. I just finished paying for the car and it's on its last leg (Miller 36). The same idea is expressed again by Willy in talking with Linda about the refrigerator.   They are discussing the expensive General Electric which functions well versus the cheaper Hastings model that they bought.   â€Å"Whoever heard of a Hastings refrigerator?   Once in my life I would like to own something outright before it’s broken!   I’m always in a race with the junkyard!   I just finished paying for the care and it’s on its last legs.   The refrigerator consumes belts like a goddam maniac. They time those things.   They time them so when you finally paid for them, they’re used up† (Miller 73).   Like the products that are all around him, Willy is also used up himself, and his company will prove this by letting him go after his dedication all these years. The idea that everyone must work really hard and advance their way up the ladder in order to make a good living is also presented.   â€Å"To suffer fifty weeks of the year for the sake of a two-week vacation, when all you really desire is to be outdoors, with your shirt off.   And always to have to get ahead of the next fella.   And still—that’s how you build a future† (Miller 22). Ben and Charley are both presented as foils to this idea, and Willy is depressed that he does not live the lifestyle of either of these men, but he â€Å"missed the boat† so to speak.   These men both kind of â€Å"luck† into things as is often the case in a capitalistic society.   Many times, it makes no difference how hard one works or how liked he is or anything else; it is about being in the right place at the right time. People can be discarded in this capitalistic world when they no longer serve their â€Å"purpose.†Ã‚   Willy is fired after devoting his life to the company with the horrible epithet of capitalism, â€Å"business is business.†(Miller 80).     Willy has given his adult life to sales for this company, and when he is no longer â€Å"useful† to them, he is fired.   â€Å"[Y]ou can't eat the orange and throw the peel away — a man is not a piece of fruit!† (Miller 82) The Wagner Company has sucked the life out of him and then fired him, discarding him like a useless piece of orange rind.   â€Å"I don't say he's a great man. Willie Loman never made a lot of money. His name was never in the paper. He's not the finest character that ever lived. But he's a human being, and a terrible thing is happening to him. So attention must be paid. He's not to be allowed to fall in his grave like an old dog. Attention, attention must finally be paid to such a person† (Miller 56). Linda is making a statement to America here about the way workers are treated in such a capitalistic society.   When everyone wants to â€Å"get ahead,† humanity is lost.   Willy is a person, and he deserves to be treated like one.   â€Å"He works for a company thirty-six years this March, opens up unheard-of territories to their trademark, and now in his old age they take his salary away† (Miller 56). Humanity is lost.   Workers should have pensions for devoting their lives to a company.   As he says to Charley, â€Å"you end up worth more dead than alive† (Miller 76).   His life insurance policy left to his family will provide better for them than he ever could.   This again, is the sadness of many corporate lives when they have reached the end of their â€Å"usefulness† according to the powers that be. Willy even has grandiose ideas about his own funeral and his importance in this dehumanized world.   Willy has given his life for the business, and feels that his funeral will be spectacular.   All the people he sold to will be there.   People from all over New England will attend because he was so well-liked but in reality, no one attends—his family and Charley. In all, Willy Loman was destroyed by the capitalistic society.   Capitalism kept him working in a job to â€Å"keep up with the Jones’† he was able to buy all the things that society sells to us with the idea that they are indispensable.   He devotes his life to his job in sales, never spending much time with his family because he was always on the road.   In the end, what does he have to show for it?   Nothing.   His boys are not productive and suffer from false illusions of their own.   He kills himself so that his life insurance policy will provide for his family.   Arthur Miller provides this play is a kind of indictment on the way the world is progressing today, particularly America.   He provides Willy Loman as a sort of tragic hero who wants to hold to some of the â€Å"old† ideas but is continually beaten down by the new trends.   Capitalism kills the American Dream. Works Cited Miller, Arthur, Death of a Salesman, Penguin Books, Middlesex England, 1949.                  

Losing Common Sense in a Sea of Technology Essay

Technology has made miracles take place. Technology is an asset to our society. Things we could not do with our anatomical brains we can conjure up with a machine. With the answers to simple questions at fingertips with the availability of the internet, simple thought processes replaced with instant gratification. Critical thinking is almost extinct due to rapid response internet websites and databases. In today’s society, we depend on computers and technology to dictate schedules, lead meetings, and manage social lives. Therefore, ruing personal bonds, destroying critical and creative thinking, and losing common sense. The introduction of technology and computers on society has been beneficial in many areas, science having the biggest impact. For example, new radar technology will allow forecasters to see extreme weather, as will potential improvements to satellite technology, as well as computer models that run on powerful super computers. With these radars improved, more lives saved. â€Å"This will allow us to get to cover faster and be better prepared† (Lubchenco, Hayes 68). Another example of how technology has been beneficial to our society is in the medical field. Today many surgeries perform with the help of robots. Robotically assisted cardiac surgery presents less invasive than conventional surgery, with shortened hospital stays and faster return to daily activities (Krueger, Jones, Howell, etal. ) The largest benefit of technology is the easy and fast access that has come from the Internet. Almost any subject matter, research papers, and technical documents are available to anyone. Communication has also become much simpler using the Internet. Computers and the internet has become a staple in the American home. Not only are Americans conforming to an E-society, the rest of the world is too. This intention of this paper is not to discourage technology. Technology has done the unimaginable in societies here and abroad, perhaps technology has done too much. As we advance in the small gadgets and upgrade our systems to use the latest software, it is safe to say, we have become â€Å"addicted†. Because of this â€Å"addiction† or dependency on technology and computers, more and more people are flooding to their P. D. A’s or to their laptops to do simple everyday tasks; we should know how to do already. Anything from grocery shopping, booking a plane flight, depositing a paycheck, can be done over the internet from a personal computer, cell phone, or I Pad. Life as we know it is becoming a virtual reality within itself. We focus our addenda’s and our itineraries based around technology. Despite the positive impact technology has made on education, there are certainly areas that it poorly used. â€Å"The uncontrolled use of technology without examining its long-term benefits and potential problems is not something that should be allowed to happen in education. (Hodorowicz) For example, more and more often universities are moving toward â€Å"distant learning†, or online classes. â€Å"Nothing can replace the interactions between students and teachers. Once the process of learning from a fellow person has been automated to something mechanical many things will be lost† (Hodorowicz). Furthermore, automated grading loses the ability to see just where a student went wrong, or what the student was trying to achieve in an answer. Online courses remove the ability to deal with truly great teachers in a personal way, and it removes the ability to interact with other students. Automated education also hinders getting help when needed. It has been noted that with the use of computers and technology â€Å"education will no longer be an unpredictable and exciting adventure in human enlightenment, but an exercise in conformity and an apprenticeship to whatever gadgetry is useful in a technical world† (Schwarz). Technology has also been useful inside the home. yet, has been a key factor in the decline of stable, social relationships. Researchers are debating whether the Internet is improving or harming participation in community life and social relationships. This research examined the social and psychological impact of the Internet on 169 people in 73 households during their first 1 to 2 years on-line. We used longitudinal data to examine the effects of the Internet on social involvement and psychological well-being. In this sample, the Internet was used extensively for communication. Nonetheless, greater use of the Internet was associated with declines in participants’ communication with family members in the household, declines in the size of their social circle, and increases in their depression and loneliness (Kraut, Patterson,Keisler,etal. . Virtual communities are becoming an ever-growing normality. With the social networks like Facebook and twitter comes the anonymous predators. † The Internet is populated by people with false identities, people with inaccurate information, people who express themselves quickly and with little reflection or sense of accountability† (Schwarz). New frauds and ill opportunities to drain bank accounts emerge daily; just an example of how we are coming adapt to the cyber world with our eyes wide open. We are losing what it means to be human and the morals that were once instilled. As stated earlier in this paper, this is not a paper of whether technology in our world today is right or wrong. This is a paper proving how our ethical values and use of common knowledge are becoming extinct because we allow computers to think for us. We are losing creativity to think â€Å"outside the box† with our learning becoming more of a mathematical equation than an experience. Relying too much on technology is what will lead to the extinction of man, maybe not of a species, but of an individual, rather than random avitar. Works Cited Schwarz, Gretchen.

Case Attrition Essay Example for Free

Case Attrition Essay Case attrition is the failure of arrests to come to trial; less than half of all felony arrests result in conviction (Meyer, J & Grant, D. 2003). Basically, case attrition is when an arrest does not end in a trial conviction, which happens quite often in the court justice system. The effect case attrition has on the criminal justice system effects all levels of the criminal justice process, because an arrest or no arrest affects all aspects of the criminal justice process. Law enforcement officers can develop negative feelings about the justice system and feel that their work is not getting noticed. The high levels of case attrition in modern systems shows that the criminal law has very substantial limitations as a direct crime control such as, deterrence, incapacitation, and rehabilitation. Criminal convictions and penalties deserved punishment and reinforce important societal denunciation, but if these penal consequences are imposed according to procedure that are widely perceived as fair and just. Attrition can get rid of individuals in the over-worked justice system that were arrested that either had a problem with the legality of the arrest or it was the result of an overworked, or bad officer in a situation where an arrest was not necessary (Meyer, J & Grant, D. 2003). When these cases are removed from the justice system, it is possible for attorneys and judges to be able to focus on more serious crimes. Reference Meyer, J & Grant, D. (2003) The Courts in Our Criminal Justice System Case Attrition. (2016, Mar 17).